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Frankie_J
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15 Feb 2012, 8:02 pm

Does anyone else feel uneasy on trains and buses? It's alright if it's fairly quiet, but when it's busier I'm slightly on edge. It maybe because I've had bad experiences with people before. I've been bullied on the train before. I also can't stand sitting opposite people. I can't relax. My eyes just DON'T KNOW where to look. Even when you stare out the window it looks like you're staring at someone's reflection. My face forgets how to relax.



layla87
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15 Feb 2012, 8:05 pm

Yeah I have the same problem. We don't have trains, but on the buses I kinda feel the same way. I don't know what I can look at and what I can't look at.
Bullying is not really an issue as people on the bus hardly talk at all. When the bus gets crowded is when I have some issues



Callista
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15 Feb 2012, 8:37 pm

It's unpredictable and noisy. The other people on the bus don't bother me directly; but more because there are smells of people and their perfume and their packages; and because I don't know what they are going to do. A bus ride is a tiring thing for me, but I can do it if I need to.


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Tuttle
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15 Feb 2012, 9:09 pm

I've always found trains easier than buses. They're not nearly so crowded, move much smoother, and tend to have fewer smell and sound issues.

I wish I didn't have to take buses to get places. Some of the city buses I can take, others I can't, basically it comes down to whether I can be away from people on the bus (or I'll get a migraine from the smokers). I also, always sit in the elderly and disabled seats at the front of the bus and sometimes people look at me weird, thinking that i'm a standard college student, and why'd I be sitting there, but people tend to avoid those seats, so I can look out the window in the front of the bus (making me less likely to miss my stop), and am less likely to get a migraine from taking the bus.



Trainbuff
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15 Feb 2012, 9:22 pm

Overall, I don't mind riding public transportation as its one of my special interests....

But I totally agree with the OP about not knowing where to look when you sit across from someone, and people think you're staring at their reflection in the window. This is easily my least favorite aspect of riding Transit, if you have a window seat, and its daytime its not so bad as there's no reflection, nighttime or riding in the tunnel its a different story.



Uhura
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15 Feb 2012, 9:59 pm

What does O_O mean? In schools it is one on one but I don't understand how that applies here.



OliveOilMom
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15 Feb 2012, 10:09 pm

Trains don't bother me and I really enjoy them. Both subway trains and Amtrack type trains.

I hate busses. I also hate taxi's or ambulances, or police cars (obvious reason there, huh?) or riding with anyone else driving. I cannot stand not having control in a vehicle. I'm a very nervous rider.

Crowds don't bother me at all. In fact, I'd rather be on a crowded bus than an almost empty one. I figure that if we wreck, and I'm in the middle of a lot of people, that's more cushion for me and I'd have less of a chance of getting injured. I don't care at all about being around other people or their noise or smells or looking at me or whatever. I just ignore them or if it's a smelly person, I move away.


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Frankie_J
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16 Feb 2012, 5:59 pm

Uhura wrote:
What does O_O mean? In schools it is one on one but I don't understand how that applies here.


Oh. It's a face with the eyes wide open. :lol:



ManicMinx
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16 Feb 2012, 7:46 pm

Oh my god, finally people who understand what a nightmare riding the bus is!! ! I don't have a car at the moment, but I know I HAVE to get a job, but the thought of having to ride the bus is enough to give me a panic attack! I just simply DON'T want to take it. When I had a job, I chose to walk to work, which was a 30 minute walk. The reason I don't want to take the bus is because like many of you, I don't want to have to interact with people, come into contact with them, feel obligated to make small talk, etc. But I also have a problem with having to transfer buses to get to my route. It's hard enough to have to do this once, but to do it twice?! By the time I get to work I'm going to me so stressed out, and then I'm gonna have to deal with MORE people! Then there's the fear that I'm gonna get on the wrong bus and end up on the other side of town. Keep in mind that I haven't taken the city bus since I was a little girl, these are just scenerios that go through my mind at the thought of having to take the bus. Even though I haven't taken the city bus since a kid, I know I hate buses because in high school I hated taking the bus as well. I had no choice but to take it in the morning, but it wasn't all that bad because most of the people on the bus were quiet and still half asleep, plus the bus would be nice and dark because it was still really early in the morning, but in the afternoon I would walk home, which was about an hour walk. I got my exercise AND I avoided the bus :wink:

P.S. I HATE THE BUS!



Frankie_J
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16 Feb 2012, 8:21 pm

Yeah. I can relate. I'm dreading the whole commute to work. I can't STAND it. It's depressing and awkward. Urgh.
I just remembered when I was back at school I had to commute by train. I hated every second of it. Too many people. No personal space. On my way home the train would be FULL right up to the doors with school kids. I can't stand them. I always get scared of feeling uncomfortable and intimidated or spoken to, and because some school kids are immature and rude, I was scared I'd be a target, which has happened before for reasons I don't know. Maybe because I'm vulnerable to it and wouldn't retaliate. I ended up deciding to wait half an hour every day for the next train because it was quieter.... In all weathers. I just had to.



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16 Feb 2012, 8:56 pm

I can't stand the squeaky noises that older buses and trains make when they come to a stop. I can't stand the noise and the smells and the crowds on trains and buses (especially crowded ones....I'll let several buses go by so I can get on one with fewer ppl). I get really bad sensory overload on public transit.



eristocrat
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16 Feb 2012, 9:17 pm

My ex with AS just about COULD NOT get on a bus. Excuse me for shouting. It was a big deal for him.

It took me a while to get used to the idea of using public transportation, and now when I do, I sort of talk myself through it in a very explicit way. There are a lot of steps you have to do, you know? And of course you are forced to see/hear/smell everybody. If you have the luxury to avoid the crowded rush hour, that can be a huge help... it took me a while to figure out who was likely to be drunk and avoid them. It's nice to have a paper or a crossword so no one starts talking to you.



Invader
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16 Feb 2012, 9:56 pm

I've found train journeys to be easier when you're getting drunk.

If it's a long trip, and you arrive in a strange town at night after several hours of drinking, it can be a little complicated trying to find your way to wherever you were going, but a taxi can usually help out.



ECJ
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17 Feb 2012, 4:29 am

I can soo relate to this.
I used to have panic attacks on all public transport, buses, trains, planes; so avoided using them and would walk everywhere. Then my uncle (a therapist) pointed out I'll have to use them at some point as I don't drive. So he challenged me to start using them.
I can use buses ok now, I slowly increased the amount of time I spent on a bus, from 5 mins to an hour. I'm ok most of the time, but if I'm nervous the movement/vibration of the bus makes my nerves worse. And if people with lots of perfume or who smell get on the bus, I find it hard.
My current challenge is trains.....they are smoother than buses, which I like. But I still find them difficult at the moment. I can only go 20mins on a train without a panic attack.
Planes are hard because I can't get out if I have a panic attack!



ManicMinx
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17 Feb 2012, 2:47 pm

Invader wrote:
I've found train journeys to be easier when you're getting drunk.

If it's a long trip, and you arrive in a strange town at night after several hours of drinking, it can be a little complicated trying to find your way to wherever you were going, but a taxi can usually help out.


Everything is easier when you're drunk LOL



The_Sleeper
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17 Feb 2012, 2:51 pm

Invader wrote:
I've found train journeys to be easier when you're getting drunk.

If it's a long trip, and you arrive in a strange town at night after several hours of drinking, it can be a little complicated trying to find your way to wherever you were going, but a taxi can usually help out.




Lol, but i missed my stop a couple of times through having something to drink. And i made an idiot of myself by spilling a full can over a table once. It solves problems but creates different ones in their place, i'd rather be sober tbh.